Night Classes at ARC Stockton

Audience Access Arrangements

This info sheet has been prepared in January 2024. It will be updated in early March 2024 once the show is in rehearsals and more detailed information is available.

Venue Access:

Please visit https://arconline.co.uk/visit-arc/access-and-our-building/ for more information about the building and accessing ARC.

What to Expect:

When you arrive into the space where the performance will happen, you will have time to look around and explore before the show begins. There will be 4 big, colourful paper structures around the sides of the room and festoons of lightbulbs lighting the space.

The show will take place in different parts of the room. Sometimes the audience will be together in one big group, watching / listening to the show. Sometimes the audience will be split into 4 groups watching, listening or taking part in (optional) activities around sides of the space. There will be seating with backs available in all the different spaces where performance happens.

When the audience is all together there will be times where people are invited to stand to watch/listen. These sections will last no longer than 10 minutes. There will also be seating for those who want or need it during these sections.

There are 3 performers - Alex, EJ and Harrison. Alex and Harrison perform in English. EJ performs in British Sign Language. There are also 2 BSL interpreters.

Alex, EJ and Harrison will begin the show by making a welcome announcement. They will explain that they are your guides. They will show us how to make a little booklet and talk about space and the night sky.

They will divide the audience into 4 groups. They will then invite the 4 groups to travel around 4 different learning experiences. These will take place in 4 different areas of the performance space. You can take part in the activities if you like or just sit back and watch or listen. The audience will come back together as 1 big group at the midpoint of the show (after 2 of the learning experiences), and then again at the end of the show.

The feeling of Night Classes aims to be warm, welcoming and enjoyable. The show includes some activities you can take part in - like making a little booklet. However, you will not be made to do anything you don’t want to. It’s up to you!

For d/Deaf and hard of hearing audience members:

·      Night Classes is performed in a mixture of BSL and spoken English. The show has 1 deaf performer and 2 hearing performers.

·      Both performances at ARC will be BSL signed performances. Members of the ARC Front of House team will be available to advise of the most appropriate seating location.

·      There will be no captioned performances.

·      A t-coil loop system is in place in the Theatre.

For blind or visually impaired audience members:

·      We are planning for one of the performances to be audio described, please indicate in advance if you require this.

·      We are able to provide a free touch tour of the performance space to enable you to explore the stage and get a feel of the set and costumes before the play starts. The touch tour will take place one hour before the start of the show.

For wheelchair-using audience members and people with limited mobility:

·      ARC is fully wheelchair accessible.

·      The format of the performance is non-traditional. This means the layout of the theatre will be different to what you might be familiar with. We will not be using the traditional theatre seating. The audience will move around the space at various times during the performance. This will happen at a gentle pace in a step-free area, with support from the performers and front of house team where needed.

·      There will be seating (including seats with backs) available in all the performance areas and we will ensure that enough space and viewing points are included for wheelchair-users.

Relaxed Performance:

We understand that the term ‘relaxed performance’ can mean different things depending on the space you’re visiting. For Night Classes, all performances are relaxed performances. This means:

·      You are welcome to enter and exit the space during the performance.

·      There will be a space to leave bags and coats at the ‘baggage drop-off’ point.

·      There will be low levels of lighting throughout the performance and no moments of blackout/complete darkness.

·      There will be no sudden loud noises during the performance.

·      There will be a breakout space available.

·      There will be time to explore the space before the performance begins.

Familiarisation Visits:

We are happy to provide a familiarisation tour ahead of your visit. We will also ensure that you are able to enter the theatre at least 20 minutes before the performance starts to familiarise yourself with the space.

Other access information:

Assistance dogs are welcome.

Personal Assistant (PA) / carer tickets are available for free where it is an access requirement, please contact ARC Box Office.